A closely related issue to that of youth is the rights of children involved in armed conflict. The formal legal term used internationally for such children is "Children Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups (CAAFAG [1])," although the term "child soldiers" is more commonly used. Similarly, when referring to youth involved in armed conflict, we have introduced a new concept called "Youth Associated with Non-State Armed Groups (YANSAG)," defined as "any person aged between 18-35 years, but not strictly limited to this age range, who is or who has been recruited or used by an NSAG in any capacity." [2] However, "youth soldiers" might be a common term for this demographic. Nevertheless, in this taskforce, we define youth involved with non-state armed groups as "youth combatants." This is because the term "soldiers" can sometimes imply members of national armed forces, and not all youth involved in armed conflicts take on a military role; some may be involved in different capacities, making "youth soldiers" an imprecise term.
Furthermore, the term "combatants" in international humanitarian law is defined as "all members of the armed forces of a party to a conflict, excluding medical and religious personnel" in international armed conflicts. They are granted the rights to (1) directly participate in hostilities and (2) be treated as prisoners of war if captured. In the context of non-international armed conflicts, however, the combatants do not enjoy the same status, and they are referred to as "civilians taking part in hostilities" under humanitarian law.
Given the widespread use of "combatants" in non-international armed conflict contexts without an international nature, and the unclear status of whether members of organized armed groups in non-international conflicts are "civilians" or directly participating in hostilities, we have chosen to refer to youth involved with non-state armed groups as "youth combatants." However, this term does not imply that they hold the status of combatants under international humanitarian law. Our focus remains on their needs and unique potential.
[1] UNICEF, Principles and Guidelines on Children Associated with Armed Forces or Armed Groups, 2007.
[2] Yosuke Nagai and Erica Harper, "Youth Associated with Non-State Armed Groups: Building an Evidence Base on Disengagement Pathways and Reintegration Challenges," Research Brief, the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, 2023.
